Down Time
by Trystix
Summary: Miroku is badly wounded during a battle with Naraku. While the group cares for Miroku, Inuyasha realizes it isn't Kagome he has feelings for, but rather the injured monk. yaoi standalone


Inuyasha, Miroku, Kagome, and Shippou were deep in battle with one of Naraku's henchmen when Kagome saw a bright flash and they all heard a sharp scream of pain. The demon vanished with a crack and another flash of light. When the light faded away, Kagome, Inuyasha, and Shippou saw that one another were ok, but Kagome soon shouted in horror.  
  
"Miroku!" she shrieked. The monk was lying unconscious in the grass nearby, face down and shallowly breathing. The two of them dashed to the fallen teen's side, carefully rolling him onto his back.  
  
"Here," Inuyasha said, pulling away the robes to reveal a large wound on his stomach that was bleeding profusely.  
  
"I can't do anything for this," Kagome said, looking up at Inuyasha and Shippou.  
  
"We can take him to the village near here. There's an old lady there who can help him."  
  
"We must hurry, he won't last long."  
  
"We will," Inuyasha said, covering Miroku back up and taking him into his arms carefully. Miroku gained a bit of consciousness and cried out softly in pain before going limp in Inuyasha's arms again.  
  
They soon arrived in the village and went to the small home the woman lived in. She quickly let them in upon seeing Miroku, who was white as a sheet, bloody, barely breathing, and completely limp.  
  
"What happened to him?" she asked as Inuyasha gently laid Miroku on the table where she showed him.  
  
"We were attacked by a demon."  
  
"What are your names?"  
  
"I'm Kagome, that's Inuyasha, that's Shippou, and the hurt boy is Miroku," Kagome explained as the woman began cleaning the wound and trying to stop the bleeding.  
  
"It's deep, but I think he'll survive," she said, pressing a cloth to the wound. She applied pressure until it stopped bleeding, at which point she cleaned it again wrapped his stomach with bandage. "We'll just let him rest for the night."  
  
"When do you think he'll wake up?" Inuyasha asked as the woman laid a blanket over him.  
  
"I don't know," she said before instructing Inuyasha to lay Miroku on the small bed in the corner. She brought out blankets for Kagome, Shippou, and Inuyasha to sleep on, telling them to get some sleep and to come get her if Miroku woke up.  
  
Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippou made themselves little nests on the floor with their blankets, crawling into them and curling up to sleep. Inuyasha was the first to fall asleep, being exhausted from the battle and his worry over Miroku, Shippou and Kagome soon following.  
  
-----  
  
In the morning, they all awoke to Miroku crying out loudly in pain. The old lady heard him, dashed to his side, and laid him back, calming him down. She pulled his blanket back and carefully sat him up, resting his forehead on Inuyasha's shoulder while she unwrapped the bandages. She then laid him back down on the bed and looked at his wounded stomach, which was a raw red, except for a small ring of black that was outlining it.  
  
"They dripped poison in the wound," she said, pointing out the ring.  
  
"Is that why he's beginning to get feverish?"  
  
"Yes, he'll probably start getting nauseas too."  
  
"Will he be ok though?" Kagome asked.  
  
"If I get the antidote in him right away and he continues resting, he should be fine in a few weeks."  
  
"He'll rest if he's not feeling good or if he hurts," Inuyasha said as the woman sorted through a shelf of antidotes, taking out the right one and bringing it over to him. She helped him sit up and carefully got him to drink the antidote, letting him have a bit of water afterwards before laying him back down. "How're you feeling, Miroku?" Inuyasha asked, crouching down next to the injured monk's head and brushing a few damp strands of hair from his forehead.  
  
"It hurts," Miroku said, his voice weak and croaky.  
  
"It's all right, just get some rest and you'll feel better." Kagome told him, watching the old woman as she  
  
"I don't feel good,"  
  
"You were poisoned," Shippou piped in. Kagome sent Shippou to go sit on his blankets while she and Inuyasha stayed with the old woman and Miroku. The old woman cleaned the wound, causing Miroku to scream out in pain and the rest of them to wince. She quickly finished before wrapping his stomach in bandage again, letting the monk's forehead rest on Inuyasha's shoulder as she had last time.  
  
-----  
  
After about a week and a half, the effects of the poison had begun to wear off. Miroku had stopped throwing up and his fever had gone down so that it was just a low one in comparison to the previous temperature, which had been so high he'd been soaked with sweat and delirious.  
  
"Miroku, you need to lay still or you'll break your wound open again." Kagome told him, gently caressing his back. He stopped squirming and opened his dark eyes, looking up at her with sadness and pain in his eyes. She continued caressing his back gently, helping him to sit up. She picked up a cup off the small table and pressed it to his lips, telling him to drink the liquid because it would help ease the pain. He coughed and spluttered a little, which caused his stomach to sear with pain, so she gave him a cup of water and then lay him back down, covering him with the blanket again.  
  
"Inuyasha?" Miroku asked softly once the pain had dulled a little.  
  
"He's sleeping," Kagome said softly, wondering why Miroku would want to see him. Miroku whined softly, shifting slightly before settling down. Kagome smiled gently and told him to rest, she would be back to check on him in a little while. Miroku nodded slightly and closed his eyes, allowing sleep to claim him.  
  
-----  
  
A few hours later, Inuyasha stirred and woke up, going in to the room Miroku had been moved into. The monk was quietly sleeping, his dark eyelashes resting gently against his pale cheeks. Inuyasha sat down beside his bed, being careful not to wake him. He rested his hand against the teen's forehead, feeling that his fever was still lingering, and Miroku stirred, sighing softly in his sleep.  
  
Miroku continued sleeping for another half an hour before his eyes fluttered open and he yawned. Inuyasha smiled gently when he saw the other boy was awake, helping him sit up and giving him a drink of water before laying him back.  
  
"How're you feeling?"  
  
"A little bit better, Kagome gave me something for the pain."  
  
"Your fever is way down," Inuyasha said, Miroku nodding. "Are you feeling sick at all?"  
  
"No, the antidote finally took effect and got rid of that."  
  
"Good, maybe you can eat something now and regain some of your strength."  
  
"The old lady made me eat something earlier, I think you were sleeping."  
  
"All right. I'm going to go get her so we can clean your wound again."  
  
"K," Miroku said, nodding. Inuyasha left, returning a few moments later with the old woman, a bowl of warm water, and a cloth. He sat Miroku up, the dark-haired boy's head once again coming to rest on his shoulder, and the old woman peeled away the white bandages, Inuyasha helping Miroku to lie down again.  
  
"Your stomach is looking better. The dark ring is gone and the wound is starting to heal. It will still be a while before it stops hurting or you get your strength back, but it is starting to get better."  
  
"It doesn't hurt much if I've had some of that pain killing stuff Kagome has, but otherwise it's bad."  
  
"Just continue to get plenty of rest and you'll feel better soon." The old woman told him, Miroku nodding and letting her finish her work.  
  
-----  
  
Three weeks after the attack, the wound had healed over and Miroku was simply left sore and weak. Inuyasha and the old woman had continued to make sure he got plenty to eat and wasn't hurting too much, as Kagome had gone back to her own time to see her mother and Shippou had been sent ahead to the next village to see some acquaintances of theirs.  
  
"Miroku, do you want to get up and walk a bit?" Inuyasha asked. Miroku nodded, having only left his bed in the last three weeks to use the bathroom. He carefully sat up, wincing a little, and Inuyasha handed him his robes, which he pulled on. The old woman had fixed the hole in them from where he had been wounded, as well as washing the blood from them. Inuyasha helped Miroku stand and they slowly walked outside the hut, walking down the village streets. Miroku was glad for the warm sunshine and fresh air, even if he was in a small amount of pain.  
  
"Thank you," Miroku suddenly said, looking up at Inuyasha.  
  
"What are you saying thank you for?"  
  
"For helping me to get better. If you hadn't brought me here, I would probably be back in that clearing, dead."  
  
"What are friends for, right? I wasn't going to just leave you there to die. I was the one that suggested we come here, and I carried you all the way here because I was so scared you weren't going to make it."  
  
"There's more to it than that, isn't there," the monk said quietly, Inuyasha nodding.  
  
"I was so scared you were going to die, Miroku, and it was then that I realized it isn't Kagome I have feelings for, it's you."  
  
"You have no idea how long I've waited for you to say that." Miroku said, a smile causing the dark eyes to glint. Miroku leaned forward and kissed Inuyasha gently, the half-demon lassoing his arms around the monk's slim waist, being careful of the wound on his stomach.  
  
-----  
  
Two weeks later, Inuyasha and Miroku had moved on to the next village to meet up with Shippou and to be joined again by Kagome. Miroku was nearly completely well again, only having a tiny bit of soreness and a small amount of weakness. Kagome and Shippou had learned of their love and taken it well, glad that they were finally happy.  
  
"Miroku, you should rest," Inuyasha said, voicing his concern for his lover. Miroku nodded, glad for some time off his feet, and the group decided to set up camp. Inuyasha made sure Miroku was comfortable on his mat before helping Kagome and Shippou to make camp and then collecting a small amount of firewood. He then had Miroku move closer to the fire, as it was a bit chilly outside, and he lay next to the dark-haired teen, carefully putting an arm over around his waist and rubbing his stomach gently. Miroku curled up next to Inuyasha, ready to spend the rest of his days with him. 


End file.
